Circular is the New Linear

In my term paper I will examine an early effort at shifting from a linear to a cyclic conception of resources, economy and time, as a way to improve the social significance of design. When the major Nordic design schools in 1973 planned a seminar on recycling as sustainable design strategy, it represented a radical effort to break with some of the fundamental tenets of these institutions¡¯ own ideological heritage.

The concept of ¡®circular economy¡¯ has been promoted as a model capable of considering both the economic and ecological interests of society. Unlike a linear economic model, where resources are extracted, produced, used and then disposed as garbage or combustion, a circular economy is based on reuse, repair, renovation or recycling in a life cycle where the fewest possible resources are lost. As such it implies a cyclic understanding of resource management and consequently also of time.

The most known expression of how a circular mode of thought has been handled in design theory is Michael Braungart¡¯s production philosophy Cradle to Cradle. It has, however, been of great importance for design practice through Design for Disassembly, Design for Repair, etc. and also for consumer culture through recycling organization. As my paper will show, this cyclic conception of resources was also highly present among prominent figures at the Nordic design schools in the 1970s. In a pan-Nordic seminar topics such as the reuse of products and materials and the use of biodegradable materials would be addressed in a cross disciplinary series of lectures, and discussed by design students and teachers, practicing designers, organizations and institutions within the design field.

Due to a number of unsuccessful attempts to obtain funding, the seminar was never held. That does not, however, detract from its design historical value, as it may serve as important documentation on how design educators in the 1970s viewed design education in an ecological perspective. The practice of reuse, repair and renovation is not new, neither today or in the 1970s. But for a long time it has been pushed into the background due to both the Western world's wealth and lacking will to take the environmental challenges seriously. The increasing focus on a cyclic conception of resources, economy and time within today's design practice shows the importance of knowing the experiences gained in the 1970s. If we allow the past to inform the present we have a better chance of succeeding in a cyclic approach to design, where production, use and reuse go around in circles.